September intermodal volumes see declines, reports IANA

Up against another set of difficult annual comparisons, September intermodal volumes saw across-the-board declines, according to data provided to LM by the Intermodal Association of North America (IANA).

Total September volume—at 1,499,034 units—was down 7.3% annually, well above August’s 1.6% annual decline. Trailers—at 92,954—fell 15.2% annually, and domestic containers—at 664,986—were down 7.0%. All domestic equipment, which includes trailers and domestic containers—at 757,940—decreased 8.1%. ISO, or international, containers—at 741,094—saw a 6.4% annual decrease.

On a year-to-date basis through September, total volume was up 8.7%, to 14,038,236 units. Trailers—at 906,404—rose 7.5%, and domestic containers—at 5,944,462—increased 4.1%. All domestic equipment was up 4.6%, to 6,850,866. ISO containers rose 13.0%, to 7,187,370.

Earlier this year, IANA said that the outlook over the remainder of 2021 is solid, with the pairing of strong domestic demand and weak annual comparisons as key factors. And it added that intermodal volumes are expected to be up 9% annually for the year, with ISO leading the way, with an expected annual gain of almost 13%. Domestic container moves are pegged to be up a little more than 6%, with trailer loads estimated to be up between 1.5-to-2.5%.

IANA President and CEO Joni Casey recently told LM that on a year-to-date basis volumes are still strong, especially when taking into account that intermodal activity really started to accelerate in June 2020.

“The annual comparisons and growth numbers are still very strong,” she said. “Compared to [June and July] 2020, it shows a little bit of [slowing].”

When asked about some supply chain challenges like port congestion, a lack of empty containers, chassis supply, and the driver shortage, in terms of their collective impact on intermodal, Casey explained that it is important to keep in mind are a direct result of the pandemic and its impact on the economy.

“It is not going to be worked off, in the short term,” she said. “We have had unprecedented freight volumes, following the bottoming out of traffic from the middle of 2019 or a little bit later. And nobody could have anticipated, or planned for, the growth in freight and cargo shipments we have seen in the last year-plus. All components of the international supply chain have been impacted: ocean, marine terminals, railroads, truckers, and inland facilities.

“There is no stone left unturned, in terms of people trying to deal with many challenges and issues. I think you are seeing some ancillary issues crank up, too, with the Covid outbreak in Yantian, China, which created bottlenecks in Asia that are now starting to unwind and hitting the West Coast. We have equipment issues, with the relocation of containers and chassis in high volume instance. It is really about making sure we can get the right equipment to the right place at the right time. With the volumes everyone is dealing with, it is a real difficult situation right now, but everyone is doing their best to try to remediate it.”